Women being dismissed at auto shops is nothing new. Plenty of drivers know the feeling of walking into a mechanic’s office and immediately being treated like they don’t understand their own car.
Studies even back this up. Researchers at Northwestern University found that women consistently get quoted higher prices for the same repairs, often simply because workers assume they won’t know any better.
And according to one TikTok creator, this doesn’t just happen at repair shops. She says even an AutoZone employee tried to convince her she didn’t know what she was talking about, until she proved she was right all along.
What Went Wrong at the AutoZone?
TikTok creator Tessa (@tessadecario) posted a video describing the moment she went from mildly annoyed to fully fed up. Her clip got several comments from women who said they’ve lived through the exact same thing.
"So I live for being smarter than any man out there," she says in the opening shot. She explains that she went to the AutoZone on East First Pittsburgh Street because she needed daytime running lights for her 2018 Jeep Compass. She says she’d already looked up the exact part number on the AutoZone website.
Still, she walked into the store and asked for help, hoping things would go smoothly. That’s not what happened.
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She says the employee immediately acted like she didn’t know what she was asking for. "Daytime running lights for a 2018 Jeep Compass? Headlights," he purportedly said in what she describes as a slow, condescending tone. She tried again, but he allegedly kept pushing back.
"This has happened to me twice now at this AutoZone," she says. "Like why am I even going into the store?"
After 10 minutes of back-and-forth, she says the employee finally looked something up on the computer, but still told her that AutoZone doesn’t carry daytime running lights for her model and would need to order them in. That’s when she lost patience.
"The best part about that," she says, "is that the part is literally right there." She then showed him the exact bulb she’d been looking for.
"Sixty dollars later," she says, shaking her head. "If I didn’t need these, I’d have said ‘[expletive] you.’"
Gallery: New Jeep Compass Teaser Images
What Action Can She Take?
If a customer feels an AutoZone employee is dismissive, unhelpful, or refusing to check shelves, they can file a complaint directly with the store manager or submit concerns to corporate.
In cases like this, where a customer believes they were brushed off or misled, managers can review the situation, retrieve camera footage, and address the employee's behavior.
What Do Daytime Running Lights Even Do?
Experts say these lights are designed to make cars more visible to other road users. They’re usually LED lights integrated into the car’s existing headlight and taillight setup.
They switch on automatically when the engine is running and turn off when the main headlights activate at night.
For example, if other drivers can see you more clearly, especially in low-light conditions such as rain, fog, or dusk, reaction times improve and crashes decrease. Because the lights are LED, they use minimal energy and have a negligible impact on fuel or battery consumption.
Modern dashboards are often illuminated constantly, making it easy to forget your headlights entirely, so daytime running lights serve as a safety net.
Commenters Share Their Thoughts
The top comments on the video came from people who said they’ve experienced the exact same thing. One user wrote, "They tried to sell me a cabin air filter for $55 and I said, ‘It’s $10 on Amazon?’ He said, ‘But we can install it for you.’ I was like, ‘Sir, YouTube is free.’"
Another chimed in, "Or when you go get your oil changed and they’re like, ‘Do you even know what oil is?’"
Others argued that this kind of interaction is common across the auto world. "This is what it’s like at a dealership too," someone commented. "It’s insufferable."
Not everyone thought the employee was being malicious. One person suggested the issue might be system-related. "Their computers don’t always show what’s in the aisles," they wrote. "Lights are used for multiple things, so ‘running lights’ probably didn’t help him. He was probably honestly trying."
Motor1 has reached out to AutoZone and Tessa via email for comment and will update this article if they respond.
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